Daughter of Fire
by GirlOnTheSidelines
Summary: There comes a time when you have loved someone for so long that you forget why you loved them in the first place. Rose Weasley is restless. By now she is used to the rumours that surround her and her family but then she hears one that changes everything… a thousand thoughts and a thousand emotions come cascading down on her but she can put a name to only one: betrayal.
1. Prologue

**I**

**Prologue**

This is the story of how I learned that first love was just that: _first_ love. More often than not, first love does not stay; it changes and alters with time to become nothing more than a memory. When I was thirteen, I thought I had found the boy I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. Of course, at thirteen, I was naïve enough to think that I was part of a fairy-tale and that I would get my happy ending. In reality, I suppose you could say that I did… but not in the way I was expecting.

I remember the day well; it was a Tuesday morning in late September 2019. We were sitting in Defence Against the Dark Arts and Professor Creevey was making us write an essay on Boggarts, my best friend (and cousin) Roxanne Weasley was sitting beside me, scribbling away with a slight frown etched on her forehead. I remember wondering if she could hear how hard my heart was beating.

That was the day I fell for a boy I didn't know, a boy my father had warned me to stay away from, a boy with platinum blond hair that fell in front of his grey eyes as he leaned over his parchment. That was the day I fell for Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy. When I was thirteen, I thought it was love… I thought it was love because I was too inexperienced to know better. Besides, I was a hopeless romantic from a young age and I was constantly looking for a boy to be my Romeo.

From that day on, until just before my OWLs, I nursed a secret crush on the evasive Slytherin boy with grey eyes. I never told anyone, not even Roxanne, my _best_ friend… I often wonder if I had just been open with her then, if any of this would have happened. But wondering about such things is a pointless exercise because we can never _really_ know the answer. I preferred to keep silent – I think I found it more romantic or something equally irrational.

But my decision to fall for Scorpius Malfoy was not the only thing that happened that day which later played an important role in my story. No, that was also the day my other cousin, Lucy Weasley who was in the year above Roxanne and I, got asked out by her long standing crush, Charlie Goldstein, a shy and reserved Ravenclaw. Of course, it was not until much later that this affected me.

So, before we begin, perhaps I should tell you a little about myself. My name is Rose Olivia Weasley and I am the daughter of Ron and Hermione Weasley – but you probably know that – I also have a younger brother called Hugo and far too many cousins to list off here. Like the rest of my family, I was sorted into Gryffindor along with Roxanne and Albus. The three of us had always been very close, Albus was the son of my parents' best friend and we lived on the same road in Godric's Hollow. Roxanne on the other hand, was the unexpected daughter of George and Angelina Weasley who owned the shop where my dad sometimes worked so we would often spend ours running around the shop with each other. As much as I loved Albus, Roxanne was a girl and every girl needed a best-girlfriend, so she became mine.

Those were the simple days, the days before exams and boys took over our lives. My story starts just before the Easter Holidays in my Fifth Year, in the Potions classroom that always gave me the creeps. Professor Zabini was in a particularly foul mood which was probably the reason that when his favourite pupil walked – or rather _gilded_ – in late, he made her sit with us Gryffindor miscreants. She was a girl named Vivian Nott and no one really knew anything about her other than the fact her father had been a Death Eater, as had her grandfather before him. She was a beautiful girl with lustrous, black ringlets and a pale complexion that my freckles and I envied greatly; she was quite small but still managed to retain an air of dominance wherever she went. At the time, I hated her. I hated her for one simple reason: she was Scorpius Malfoy's best friend.

Anyway, I am getting ahead of myself; let's rewind time a little… The date was the 19th of April 2022.


	2. Red

**I**

**Red**

**_Friday 19_****_th_****_ April 2022_**

I smash the root with my knife. It goes flying off the table and into the back of Davis, serves him right the vile Slytherin. I hate Slytherins. All of them. Even _him_. _Especially_ him. And _her_.

"Detention Davis," Zabini's voice is eerily calm and I turn to look at what Davis had done wrong. His potion is dripping off the table, an apparently result of my root knocked him over. Oops. _She_ snorts and I glare at her. "Well Miss Nott, I am no longer sure if your potion is so good after all," Zabini slithers behind me. "I mean in contrast to whatever they are supposed to be anything would look impressive." The bastard is indicating at my cauldron, well mine and Roxanne's and Al's. "Weasley, I suggest you stop with whatever atrocity you are attempting to make before you kill us all." He peers over my shoulder; I clench my jaw to refrain from getting myself a detention with a rude remark.

Perhaps I should explain myself; I am not normally this agitated but thanks to Zabini's ridiculous notion of making Vivian Nott sit at _our_ table, my mood has dropped considerably. You see, I have a strong dislike for Nott and having her sit in such close proximity is rather irritating because it means that I have a constant reminder that Scorpius Malfoy is involved with another girl. Because I am pretty sure they are involved with each other… Why else is he the only person she actually speaks to?

Scorpius Malfoy… After developing a crush on him in Third Year, I have often tried to find ways of talking to him or at least getting him to notice me. Evidently, I have been unsuccessful as he still seems blissfully unaware of my existence while I watch him from afar... Well, maybe just the other side of the classroom but that doesn't sound quite so romantic. Of course, I – being a Weasley – am forbidden to be in love with a Malfoy but unfortunately love is not an emotion that is easy to control and I was in love with him before I realise what was going on.

Following Zabini's instructions, I clean up my miserable attempt at a potion and pack my books in my bag. Roxanne is glaring at a group of Slytherins on the other side of the classroom where Malfoy is sitting. Yeah my best friend hates Malfoy, which is probably one of the reasons I have never told her how crazy I am about him. To be honest, her hatred of him is a bit weird, she is normally the most tolerant in our family but when it comes to Malfoy she is completely unreasonable, he is really not _that_ bad – call me biased but it is true, he has never actually done anything to offended her, not that I am aware of anyway.

Sighing internally, I follow Nott out of the classroom. Merlin, she is annoying with all her perfection and the way she glides down the corridor and everyone just moves out of her way (even the sixth and seventh years) it drives me mad as I jostle my way through the crowd. At last the Fat Lady appears before me and I grumble the password, she tells me off for being grumpy before letting me in. The common room is filling with students as they escape from lessons, right now I could do with being alone because my head is killing me. I begin heading towards the dorms and my extremely comfortable four-poster bed only to find my way blocked by the all too familiar figure of James Sirius Potter.

"Hey Rose," he smiles awkwardly. "You okay?"

To say me and James did not get on would be a lie, we did. In fact, after Roxanne, Al and Lucy, he was my favourite cousin and other than his infuriating habit of calling me 'Rosie' we get on like a house on fire… Seriously, we once set alight to Aunt Ginny's kitchen. (I think I have been partially deaf ever since – boy can that woman yell!) Anyway, normally, I would be delighted to see James but right now, not so much. You see, other than my passion for Scorpius Malfoy, I have another, equally strong passion: Quidditch.

In my Second Year, I made reserve Keeper on the Gryffindor team. Due to an accident in Care of Magical Creatures, the Keeper was confined to the Hospital Wing three days before the match against Hufflepuff and as a result, I had to play. The captain at the time was a Seventh Year called Stephan Grey and he made me train at every possible opportunity in those three days… If I ever questioned my love of the sport it was then, but somehow I made it through and we won the game by a reasonable margin of one hundred and ninety points. Ever since, I have been determined to win every game I play. Call me overly competitive if you will but every girl must have a major flaw and Quidditch is mine.

So why am I annoyed at James? Well, because he decided to kick me off the team.

"Get lost James," I grunt in the most attractive way possible.

"Come on Rose," he whines and I can tell he is just _itching_ to call me 'Rosie'. "You know how much Quidditch means to me and this is my last year – hell, this is my last _game_. I really need to win this Rose and after we almost lost against Ravenclaw because of you…" he gives me his sappy look that normally makes girls fall to his feet. "Please Rose, I hate it when you're mad at me."

"I just don't get_ why_ you kicked me off?"

"Come on Rose, we almost lost against Ravenclaw in our last match and that was because you were shouting at all the players, giving them orders that contradicted mine. You know you are my top Keeper but I need someone who isn't going to cost me the game."

"But James, Hugo and Max were being _stupid_, what was I supposed to do? Let them smash Bludgers into our own players?" I sigh in exasperation. My brother Hugo and Max Jordan (another Fifth Year Gryffindor and one of Al's best mates) are our Beaters and normally they are very good but in our last game they just lost it and Lily Potter (James and Al's little sister) almost got a Bludger to the head. Being the competitive girl that I am, I shouted at them. "I've been looking forward to this game for _months_ James!"

"I know Rose and I'm really sorry… Look, I'll think about it over Easter, I'm not making any promises though. Maybe we can play some games round yours and if you can manage not to shout at _anyone_, I might let you back on." I give a girlish squeal and throw my arms around his neck. "I said I would _think_ about it," he chuckles and I give him a big kiss on the cheek before shoving him gently out of the way and running up the stairs to the Fifth Year dorm.

Just as I crash down onto my four-poster bed, the dorm door opens again and three girls enter. Lara Coote practically jumps onto the bed beside me, her long legs dangling off the end. She sits up and shakes her dark brown hair from her face; her skin is a shade darker than Roxanne's and remains irritatingly flawless. Her best friend, Nina Jones, could not be more different. Where Lara has dark skin, Nina's is almost white; where Lara has short, frizzy, brown hair, Nina has smooth black hair that falls to her shoulders; where Lara is tall, Nina is tiny; where Lara is loud and full on, Nina is reserved and quiet but still just as passionate; where Lara speaks before she thinks, Nina thinks before she speaks. Yet somehow they ended up best friends, despite a rocky start in First Year where Lara told Nina her glasses looked funny.

The third girl is called Madison Robinson, she is a muggle born with a love of boys and the entertainment they provide. Her best friend is a muggle girl she has known since birth but in school, she is pretty close to Lara and Nina. Madison has curly brown hair that falls to half way down her back and almost as many freckles as me; she is a few inches shorter than Lara, making Roxanne the tallest in our dorm… In fact, I think Roxanne might be the tallest girl in Hogwarts.

"Have you packed yet?" Nina asks, going to sit on her pristine bed, her trunk already packed and waiting for the House Elves to take it down to the carriages tomorrow morning. I shake my head and she rolls her eyes.

"Hey Mad, could you get some more of those muggle sweets your brought back after Christmas, the lemony ones?"

"Lara, last time I brought sweets back, you ate the entire packet by yourself!" Madison laughs.

"I promise I won't eat them _all_ by myself this time… _please?" _she begs, giving Madison her puppy dog eyes that have got her out of more detentions than anyone cares to remember.

"Fine," Madison sighs in defeat and I laugh, chucking a pillow at Lara's head just as Roxanne walks in. I can tell just by looking at her that something is wrong, there is a small frown etched on her forehead that she only gets when she is having an internal struggle with herself.

"You okay Roxie?" I ask as she sits down on the edge of her bed.

"I'm fine," she replies hesitantly and I know I will get nothing more out of her – she is stubborn like that. Roxanne is almost as reserved as Nina sometimes and although she is my best friend, she will not always tell me what is bothering her until she has figured it out on her own. In some ways, Roxanne is as different from me as Nina is to Lara, with her calmness and reasonableness… she is without a doubt the most down to earth person I know. That is, until Scorpius Malfoy comes into the picture.

I cannot remember exactly when she decided to hate him; it has always just been a part of her. Ever since our first train journey to Hogwarts when I had found her wrestling with him in the corridor of the train (she never told me the reason they had started wrestling) they have always gone out of their way to annoy the other… Or at least, that was the case until about half way through Fourth Year when Scorpius just stopped. I figured Roxanne would get over whatever grudge she held against him just as he seemed to have done but for some reason, it just got worse. A few weeks ago, she completely lost it and he ended up in the Hospital Wing with a broken nose. No one knows what set her off; she doesn't like to talk about anything remotely to do with Scorpius so asking her is just pointless.

"Rose," someone sings. "Is there anybody in there?" Nina asks, leaning over to my bed to prod me in the stomach and drag me from my thoughts. "We're going down to dinner, you coming?"

"Sure," I nod and jump up. I have been starving myself all day for the End of Term Feast.

**Saturday 20****th**** April**

I slide the compartment door open to find it mercifully empty. Lara pushes passed me and throws her bag down, Nina follows suit and one of them pulls out a pack of Exploding Snaps. Madison slumps in the seat next to Nina and watches the game. Sitting beside to Lara, I frown at the empty seat on my left.

"Where's Roxie?" Madison asks, voicing my thoughts.

"Dunno," I mutter. Roxanne has been acting a little strange lately, I can tell something is bothering her but she just won't let me in on what it is so there is nothing I can do to help her. It's almost like the time in Third Year when she had the moral dilemma about whether or not to tell the Headmaster who had jinxed the Slytherin Quidditch Captain – she knew the culprit should be punished but he was just a tiny First Year who the Slytherin Captain found amusement in bullying, so apparently he had just lost it and jinxed the obnoxious git right in front of Roxanne. She had been having an internal struggle with herself for weeks after that incident. In the end, the First Year confessed himself, relieving Roxanne of her burden.

Roxanne was always the person you went to if you had a problem, she almost always seemed to have a solution or was at the very least able to give you advice. She also had a way of cheering you up of you were mad at someone or something or the ability to calming you down if you were stressed or angry. She was almost like our surrogate mother in school. It was just lately, she seemed to be fixated on a problem that she could not find a solution for and I just wish she would tell me but I know her well enough to know she won't.

"I'll go and look for her," I shrug, sliding open the compartment door. In truth, I am too restless to sit still; most people look forward to the holidays but I always find that a part of me wishes they would not come around so soon because it means I must be parted from Scorpius Malfoy once again. Wondering up the corridor I glance through the glass doors, not really paying attention until I hear a familiar voice coming from a nearby compartment.

"Al, she's in Slytherin! How many times can I go over this?"

"James, get _off_ me!"

"James?" I ask, my curiosity aroused as I stick my head into the almost empty compartment. My dearest cousin James has his little brother Al pushed up against the wall. "What _are_ you doing?" I exclaim in surprise. James and Al were closer than any brothers I knew so to see them in such a conflicting way was just bizarre.

"Just having a word with little Aly here," he grins, letting go of his brother. Al storms out of the compartment looking furious – I'm not sure if it is because of their conversation or the fact that James just called him 'Aly'. "You alright Rosie?"

"Just looking for Roxie, you haven't seen her anywhere have you?" I ask hopefully.

"No, why has she gone missing?" he frowns.

"No… I'm looking for someone whose exact location on this planet I am already aware of," I reply sarcastically.

"Huh?" Bless James, he is not always the brightest star in the sky.

"Never mind," I laugh, turning to go. I catch a glimpse of platinum blonde hair. My heart skips a beat as I step out of the compartment but there is no one there. James follows me out and we make our way down the corridor until he leaves so sit with our cousin Louis and his girlfriend Isabella Boot along with some other Seventh Years. I continue down the train, superficially searching for Roxanne but all the while looking for another glimpse of platinum blonde hair.

As our family is so large, I come across a number of cousins in my search including Lucy who is sitting with her boyfriend Charlie Goldstein and being all couple-y. I query if either of them have seen Roxanne but they both shake their heads. Hugo has a similar reply when I pounce on him coming out of the lavatory (I swear, if he hadn't just emptied his bladder, he would have wet himself). At last, I catch a glimpse of platinum blonde hair.

I hear a familiar girl's voice but am too preoccupied with the thought of Scorpius Malfoy to place a face to it.

Looking into the compartment where the voice is coming from in the hope of seeing Scorpius Malfoy, I am greeted by the sight of both object of my search. My charming cousin, Roxanne, and the love of my life, Scorpius Malfoy, in the middle of what appears to be a confrontation – seriously, does he have a death wish or something, you do _not_ go near a Weasley who is mad at you unless you really want to die.

Neither of them seems to notice I'm here so I just stare at them. I don't think I have ever seen Roxanne look so mad before, her jaws are clenched tightly and there is a vein pulsing slightly by her temple; her eyes look like if they could shoot daggers (or killing curses) at Scorpius, they probably would. Scorpius on the other hand, looks smug. No joke. He has his trademark smirk lingering on his perfect lips as he stares at my cousin.

Looking smug in front of an angry Weasley is not a good idea.

I notice he has a hand on her arm, refraining her from hitting him I'm guessing. Roxanne really needs to learn to control her temper around him or she is going to end up in some serious trouble soon. I just don't understand why her hatred of him seems to be getting worse and worse, you would think she would get bored of hating him.

"Uh… Hello?" I stutter, thinking it best to try and defuse the situation before Roxanne loses her cool… again. They both turn to me in surprise and, simultaneously, a guilty look sweeps across their faces. How peculiar.

"Weasley," Scorpius nods at me. Oh Merlin. Scorpius Malfoy just nodded at me… and spoke… sort of. My heart beats overtime. "I was just leaving." He steps forward then turns away from me to look at Roxanne. I can't see his face but whatever expression he has, it only makes Roxanne madder. Run Malfoy. While you still can. Seriously. He nods at me again before disappearing down the corridor. Oh sweet Merlin.

Roxanne and I stand in silence for a minute or so, both lost in our own thoughts – mine are all thoughts of Scorpius Malfoy and his beautiful, silky hair that I just want to run my fingers through. "Come on," Roxanne mutters darkly as she finally heads out of the compartment. "Where are the others?" she asks, her voice sounding strangely distant and uninterested. Without a word, I lead her down the corridor – in the opposite direction to Scorpius, unfortunately – to the compartment where Lara and Nina are still playing Exploding Snaps. Madison scoots up to let the moody looking Roxanne sit down as I collapse next to Lara again. No one speaks for a while ass Lara and Nina finish off their game of Exploding Snaps.

"Can you believe we only have one more term left of staring at James' beautiful arse?" Lara pipes up as she gathers all the cards in. I roll my eyes, perfectly used to friends' obsessive crushes on my relatives. "What are we going to do for the next two years?"

"I don't know but life without Louis seems pointless," Nina sighs dreamily.

"You know he has a girlfriend right, Nina?" I snort for what seems the thousandth time.

"Yeah but that doesn't mean I can't look at him," she smiles again, staring out the window, no doubt fantasising about my cousin… Ew. That is a mental image I do not need, thank you very much. "I guess we'll have to do with staring at Ned's ass-"

"_Ned_?" Madison squeals in horror. "He's _short_!"

"Nothing wrong with being short," Nina huffs defensively. "And his ass _is_ cute."

"Whatever, I prefer Luke's-" Madison's hand immediately goes to cover her mouth but it is too late, the damage has already been done… or said technically.

"Luke _Cowls_?" growls Lara, her eyes narrowing to slits as she stares at Madison. "You did _not_ just say that!" Madison turns an interesting shade of red under the heat of Lara's glare. Amongst us girls (and most other girls I suspect) there is an unspoken rule that ex-boyfriends are off limits. Luke Cowls is another Gryffindor Fifth Year and he had been dating Lara for almost four months when their relationship ended rather abruptly upon Lara discovering him in a broom closet with a Fourth Year Slytherin. He had apologies profusely, blaming a Lust Potion, but Lara was having none of it and they haven't spoken since. It makes it a little awkward sometimes when we all want to hang out together – he's one of Al's best friends.

"Alright ladies?" comes a cocky voice from the door way. "Mind if we join you?" Max Jordan asks, send a wink in Roxanne's direction, she is too busy trying to burn holes in the floor to notice though. He comes in and sits across from her, shaking his dreadlocks out of his eyes as he does so. His parents are close friends of Roxanne's parents; as children, Roxanne, Al, Max and I were best friends. Then we came to Hogwarts and drifted apart slightly, finding new friends… of course, Max's extremely one sided crush on Roxanne didn't help much.

Behind Max is Oliver Harris, he is another Gryffindor Fifth Year. He is a little on the short side, with dirty blonde hair and large brown eyes. He is the cleverest in his dorm, with Al coming second of course, despite being a muggle born – not that such prejudice actually exists anymore. Sitting next to Max, he smiles lazily before asking if we had seen Al. I replied, saying I had seen him earlier but he did not look like he was in the mood for joining us any time soon.

"What's up with you?" Max asks, nudging Roxanne with his foot. She shoots a glare at him before getting up and leaving the compartment without a word. Jeez Max, you would have thought that after being friends with her since you were born, you would have learned not to interrupt her when she is thinking. "What's her problem?" he turns on me with a frown etched on his forehead – bless him, he is kind of cute when he's been jilted by Roxanne (which happens quite a lot).

"Dunno, I found her arguing with Malfoy again," I explain, trying not to think too much about how Scorpius' hair fell in front of his beautiful grey eyes when he nodded at me.

"What is with that?" Max's frown deepens. "I know the guy's a twat and a Slytherin but he hasn't done anything _that_ bad, has he?" By way of answering, I just shrug… I was unsuccessful in my endeavour _not_ to think about how perfect Scorpius looked to think about my cousin's odd behaviour towards him.

The rest of the train journey passes by without mishap – although Roxanne doesn't return – and we get to Kings Cross a little quicker than usual. My parents are waiting for us on the Platform and smother Hugo and I with hugs and kisses the second we get off the train (yes, embarrassing or what?) before helping us with our trunks and heading towards the barrier.

The journey back to our house is a quiet one, for some reason my parents always insist on driving to and from Kings Cross rather than apparating or flooing. The city fades into field as we race by, heading Westward.

"How was school?" mum asks from the passenger seat.

"Alright," I shrug, still trying _not_ to think about Scorpius Malfoy. If my dad knew what I was thinking he would probably crash the car, at the very least, I would be strung up the nearest tree. My mum on the other hand, is all for House unity… Although being in love with a Malfoy might be taking it a bit too far, even for her.

"We're going to Diagon Alley tomorrow to go and see George and Angelina, Roxanne should be there," mum smiles. With the amount of time Roxanne and I spend together, Roxanne is like a second daughter to mum and I sometimes wonder if she misses Roxanne as much as she misses me when we are at school.

"Oh cool," I answer half-heartedly. With the way Roxanne has been acting lately, I am actually sort of looking forward to a bit of a break from her. Don't get me wrong, she is my best friend and I love her to pieces but it can be a little straining when you are cooped up with the same people for months on end in such a small dorm.

"Hey mum," Hugo butts in, clearly uninterested in going to Diagon Alley, "did you know Hagrid is trying to persuade the Headmaster to let him have a dragon! A real dragon! How cool would that be! I hope he gets a Hungarian Horntail like the one Uncle Harry had to fight, I really want to see one of them!"

"I hope the Headmaster refuses!" squeals mum in terror – not doubt for the safety of her children, I mean _she_ cannot be afraid of dragons, she bloody well rode one when she was just a few years older than me… Oh that had been a fun History of Magic lesson, I had not replied to my parents letters for a whole month because I was so mad they had never told me that they had actually ridden a dragon. When I had told Hugo, he went ballistic and pestered them for ages for every single detail. "Dragons are dangerous creatures," she explains on seeing my raised eyebrow in the mirror.

"No mum," Hugo sighs, putting on his patronising voice. "They are just misunderstood."

"You sound like Hagrid," dad snorts. "If you want to see dragons, I'll take you to see Uncle Charlie in Romania when you're older," he winks at Hugo, causing mum to slap his arm and tell him to watch the road.

"You will do no such thing!" mum snorts indignantly. This wipes the manic grin from Hugo's eager face and dad to roll his eyes (thankfully mum doesn't catch that bit).

"But mum…" Hugo whines.

"Not buts," she states but I can tell she is trying to hide a smile – she already knows there will be no keeping Hugo away from dragons when he is older. As we pull up in front of our house in Godric's Hollow, I catch dad winking at Hugo who grins back – the boy really is obsessed with dragons.

* * *

**Hello, if you like this story (or any of my stories) check out my blog for them, you can see pictures, ask questions or just browse. The link is on my profile page. Thanks for reading, GirlOnTheSidelines.**


	3. Blushes

**II**

**Blushes**

**_Wednesday 24_****_th_****_ April_**

"But George," I hear my dad sigh from the other side of the door. "You know as well as I do that Fred would be perfectly capable of running the shop – he has tonnes of great ideas and I know he is just itching to lift the shop back to its former glory…" I hesitate, a hand hovering inches from the door, posed to knock. My dad's voice is pleading as he talk to who I can only assume is Uncle George.

George makes a muffled and unintelligible noise.

"Please George," dad continues, "it would be for the best. You and Angelina could go and live in a nice cottage somewhere in the country – the one you bought just before the war maybe, where the kids were born – where it's peaceful. You know she would like that."

"I- I can't do it, Ron," George's voice is so faint I find myself pressing an ear against the door just to hear him. If only I had an Extendable Ear on me… "I just can't."

"Is this because of Fred?" dad asks, his voice unusually void of emotion. It takes me a moment to realise that he is not talking about my cousin but about my uncle… the uncle I never met. There is no response from George so I lower my eye to the key hole – my curiosity too far aroused for me to back out now. George's study blurs into view and I locate him sitting behind his desk with dad across from him. He is nodding reluctantly. "George… you have to let go," dad sighs. The words seem forced from his lips and I notice George flinch.

Fred Septimus Weasley was George's twin; he had died in the Battle of Hogwarts. George and his wife named their first born son Fred in his memory. Incidentally, Fred Jonathan Weasley, my cousin, was born nine months after his namesake's funeral. I do not know much about him, only what my parents have told me. Apparently George and Fred were trouble makers while at Hogwarts which I sometimes find hard to believe when looking at my uncle. The issue to Fred Septimus has been a tender subject recently as it came to light about a month ago that George and Angelina had never actually told their kids about him. Everyone else in the family knew accept for Fred Jonathan and Roxanne.

"I can't… I've tried but I can't…" George chokes out quietly.

I remember when Roxanne found out – she was devastated. She had been in detention (for beating up my Scorpius), organising previous detention slips when she had come across all _their_ old detention slips, at first she had been confused but when Neville came in and found her crying, he got Madame Bell, the Flying Instructor, to come and explain to her. She told me some of the things George and his twin did. Looking at him through the key hole, I cannot imagine him doing those things – he has always been the quietest of my uncles, even quieter than Percy and that is saying something.

A shadow blocks my view of my uncle and I jump away from the door as dad pulls it open. He raises an eyebrow at me – a move mum says he perfected whilst she was pregnant with me.

"Oh, hey dad," I mutter, faking innocence. He seems to buy it as he nods and walks off. "George?" I ask, stepping into his study. In our family we never bother calling people 'Uncle' or 'Aunt'. "Do you know where Roxanne is?"

"Oh, hello Rose," he smiles faintly as he looks up from his desk, he seems tired. "No, I'm afraid I don't, have you checked the store cupboards? She was sorting through an old batch of Patented Daydream Charm…" he trails off and I nod, turning to leave when his voice sounds through the stuffy room again. "Do you think the shop is still okay Rose? Please, tell me the truth…"

I turn back to look at my favourite uncle. As a child, I often spent more time here than at home and George and Angelina became like second parents to me. The look on his face is one I have not seen before; it is as if he is pleading with me to tell him everything is fine and that everything was going to be okay. He looks so vulnerable.

"Of course," I respond automatically, desperate to make him smile again. "Maybe it could do with a few new products but it's still fine… the kids at school are always sneaking your stuff in, despite it being banned," I add on and his face lights up a bit.

"Thanks Rosie," he smiles slightly and I haven't the heart to tell him not to call me Rosie.

"Rose! Is that you?" a familiar voice yells up the stairs. I say goodbye to George, having found the object of my search, before running downstairs to greet Roxanne. "Hey," she grins, "how're you? Enjoying the holidays?"

"Yeah, you?" I ask. We continue to chatter away about the holidays so far as we make our way into the kitchen where Angelina is making several cups of tea. She offers me one but I decline – it is way too hot to be drinking tea.

"So are you girls looking forward to the ball?" Angelina asks with a smile and a knowing look in her dark brown eyes. Roxanne flashes a grin at me which I am swift to return. Every year, the Ministry of Magic hosts a ball in honour of Harry Potter's defeat of the Dark Lord. Poor Harry has to give a speech and I know that Al and Lily hate it because all the attention is on them – James loves it of course.

Roxanne and I love the ball too but not because we are in the limelight. We go for the dancing and beautifully dressed people… and I might also love it because a certain someone with amazing platinum blonde hair will be there. It also gives us a chance to see some of our class mates dressed in dress-robes which can sometimes be highly amusing.

"Well girls you are in luck," Angelina grins, looking to my mum who is leaning on the opposite counter. She nods. "Hermione and I have decided that you could both do with a new dress for the occasion-" Roxanne and I simultaneously let out a loud gasp, causing our mothers to laugh before handing us some money and telling us Madam Malkin's has got some new stock in that we should have a look at.

I end up almost dragging Roxanne through Diagon Alley in my desire to get to Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions as fast as possible. It is surprisingly quiet when we finally get inside; we browse through the new arrivals, chatting about everything and nothing. I have not seen her since she left our compartment on the Hogwarts Express; mum had taken Hugo and I shopping the following day and we dropped into Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes but Roxanne was staying at her brother's and I had not bumped into her at the Burrow either – I figured she probably needed some space. However, despite her acting off towards the end of term, she seems fine now and I know that if she wants to talk about it, she will eventually so there is no need to push her on it.

"Oh Rose," she breathes in awe. "This would look amazing on you." She holds up an incredible dress in midnight blue, I can feel my eyes widen as I take it from her.

"It's beautiful," I sigh. "But I'll never be able to pull it off," a frown creases my forehead as I thread the material through my fingers. Roxanne snorts and grabs another dress in a deep, wine red.

"Sure you will," she laughs. "Let's go and have them fitted." We make our way to the fitting rooms and are greeted by two smiling dress fitters. They take us into an adjacent room and allow us to change into the dress robes. As always, Roxanne looks absolutely beautiful but in that effortless way that us mere mortals have no hope of pulling off; I on the other hand, have to make sure I do not trip over the hem of my dress as I go to stand on the raised platform so that my fitter can adjust my it.

"Do you mind if we leave to door open?" one of the fitters asks, indicating to the door that leads into the main area of the shop. "Otherwise it gets awfully hot in here," she explains and I nod. I love having my dress fitted, the feel of the fabric falling gracefully to the floor around my legs, the way it pinches in my waist and makes me feel like a woman.

Roxanne has grown quite again but I hardly notice as I chat to the fitter about the dress. My attention is, however, caught by the rush of warm air that comes in with two figures through the front door of the shop. The first is a tall woman with sleek black hair twisted elegantly at the base of her skull; the second is an even taller boy with dazzlingly platinum blonde hair.

My heart picks up its pace as it jumps into my throat: Scorpius.

Turning swiftly to Roxanne, I ignore the protests of my fitter at my sudden movement. Roxanne however, does not seem to have noticed that her arched nemesis has just walked in. I glance back at the open door of the fitting room but Scorpius has vanished from sight. My desire to see him, knowing his proximity, overcomes me.

"Do you mind if I use the lavatory?" I ask the dress fitter politely, she huffs and nods in irritation. Gathering the material in my right hand, I step down from platform and hurry in the direction of the toilets. The shop is still relatively empty as I make my way between rows of dress robes and material. The toilets are located at the back of the shop and I head towards them so as not to raise suspicion from the fitter should she be watching.

However, just before I reach them, I take a left turn and come face to face with the black haired woman who had walked in with my Scorpius – Astoria Malfoy: his mother.

"Oh, I am terribly sorry," I mutter, feeling a flush crawl across my face. Mrs Malfoy just looks me up and down, no doubt taking in my half pinned, dark blue dress and flaming red hair that is tangled down my back. What a perfect first impression to give the mother of the boy I am in love with… Please note the sarcasm.

"Do not worry about it… Miss Weasley," smiles Mrs Malfoy. Of course she would know my name – I am the daughter of two thirds of the Golden Trio, it would be weird if she did not – but it still makes me feel slightly unnerved. She continues to study me, her dark blue eyes gazing into my lighter ones. Unsure what else to do, I stare straight back at her, taking in her pale, ivory skin, completely void of any blemishes, her red stained lips and her long black robes that hang gracefully from her tall frame. After what seems an age, she nods once before moving on and leaving me somewhat dumbfound.

It does not take long however, for my mind to wonder back to its original purpose – to locate Scorpius.

My mind refuses to think straight, knowing Scorpius is somewhere nearby but I cannot see him. I tip-toe around the shop, in search of my beloved platinum blonde hair, for the best part of five minutes. At last, I decide I should return to the dress fitters before they become suspicious. And that it when I see him. He is leaning against the door frame of the fitting room, looking in. I stop in my tracks, I can only see his back but it is enough to send tingles of delight through my body. Attempting to compose myself, I hesitantly approach him, wondering how best to get his attention. I focus on my breathing. In. Out. In. Out…

"Excuse me?" I send a silent thank you to Merlin that my voice is normal. Scorpius, however, does not seem to have heard me as he does not react so I have to repeat myself a little louder. Eventually, he spins around, an almost guilty look on his face as he apologies and hurries off. Odd. I have never seen Scorpius so flustered before.

As I sigh and walk into the fitting rooms, I notice Roxanne is staring at the doorway; she looks like she has seen a ghost (in the muggle sense that is, we see ghost all the time and they really aren't that frightening).

"Roxanne… are you alright?" I ask hesitantly, she blinks and recovered herself before smiling at me as if nothing was wrong – which her previous expression disagreed with.

""Yes, I'm fine, that colour is lovely on you."

"Thanks," I smile back as the dress fitters come back in and I return to my platform-thing. Neither of us speaks as we finish getting our dress robes fitted, both too lost in thought… my mind drifts back to Scorpius and how I would look in his arms.

**Friday 26****th**** April**

"Rose!" mum yells up the stairs. "Hurry up! We're leaving!"

"Coming!" I shout, shoving my make-up bag into my bag and running downstairs, two steps at a time. Hugo and mum are standing by the fireplace waiting for me. Quickly throwing a handful of floo powder into the empty fireplace, mum shoves me into the now green flames. "Number Seven, Orchard Road," I say as the flames lick harmlessly up my legs. Sitting rooms spin past me, kitchens, bedrooms, studies… Finally, I tumble out onto a faded carpet and am greeted with a screech as Lucy throws herself at me. "Oh, hello Luc," I laugh, scrambling out of the fireplace so mum and Hugo can floo in behind me.

"I'm so glad you're here, this means you can do my hair! I've been worried about that for ages – Molly just can't do it like you do Rose!" she grinned, messing up my own hair.

"Hermione, come in, I've made tea," comes Audrey's voice from the doorway. Tonight is the night of the Ministry Ball and mum has to go early with Audrey to check security details so mum thought it would be easier if Hugo and I went with Molly and Lucy rather than get ready at home alone.

My mum follows Audrey into the kitchen and Hugo follows sulkily behind her – Balls are not really his thing. Lucy grabs my hand and drags me up to her room, eager to start getting ready by the look of the place. Her carpet, desk and bed are all littered with an assortment of make-up, nail polishes, hair potions and other things that I could not even put a name to. This would be Roxanne's hell.

"Oh, by the way, Charlie's here," Lucy says, nodding over to the corner of her room where Charlie Goldstein, her boyfriend of two and a half years, was sitting reading what looked suspiciously like a Charms textbook on one of her beanbags. Ravenclaws. I will never understand them.

"Hey Charlie," I smile. He glances up and smiles back at me before glancing at Lucy. The way Lucy looks back at him makes me long for Scorpius. He is a nice guy but quite shy, I have never really had a conversation with him before and he tends to just sit quietly whenever there are people around. "What are you reading?" I ask politely as Lucy goes to fetch something from the bathroom. He told up the book so I can see the cover – it is indeed a Charms book – before continuing to read. Oh well, at least I tried.

"Right, what shall we start with?" Lucy asks, coming back in with an armful of bottles I would not be able to name to save my life. I stare at her in bewilderment.

"Lucy… we have like five hours," I protest.

"So…? We have to do our hair, our nails, our makeup, our dress robes…" she ticks the things off on her hand, a determined look on her face that she definitely got from her mother but had a faint resemblance to Ginny.

"Fine, I'll do your nails first," I sigh in defeat, knowing there is no point in arguing. Lucy settles herself against Charlie and splays out her fingers on the carpet, handing me a bottle of dark red polish that matched her dress robes.

"Hello Rose," a shadow looms across the carpet to where Lucy is now blowing on her nails. I look up to see Molly Weasley standing in the doorway with her boyfriend, Luke Moon, standing behind her. Having finished school last year, Molly is now working at the Ministry as a personal assistant to someone or other which is probably the only reason she is going tonight. She is the quietest of all my cousins, with long dark brown hair and although she is not ugly, she is quite plain, the sort of person whose face you can never really remember after they are gone from sight.

"Hey Molly," I smile. "You coming tonight then?"

"Yes, important Ministry officials will be there…" There you go, I told you that would be the only reason why someone like Molly would go to a Ball. I have often wondered how someone as unsociable as Molly managed to get a boyfriend in the first place but her and Luke have been together since there second year. "Well, bye," and with that she vanishes again, causing Lucy to roll her eyes. Despite their many differences, Lucy and Molly are actually very close, much closer than me and Hugo, but even Lucy gets fed up when Molly talks about Ministry officials.

Several hours later, Lucy, Charlie, Hugo, Molly, Luke, Percy and I are gathered in their sitting room, getting ready to floo to the Ministry. Hugo is chatting to Luke about dragons and Luke, who is now studying to be a Healer at St Mungo's, is telling him about a guy that came in the other day with huge dragon burns on him. Molly and Lucy are chatting quietly and Charlie is standing awkwardly, looking around at the gathered people. I take pity on him.

"You alright Charlie?" I ask, resulting in him blushing slightly.

"Yeah, not particularly looking forward to this though," he mutters, shrugging.

"Awh, how come?" I prompt, not really understanding how he could _not_ be looking forward to this. The Ministry Ball was the event of the year. Everyone was there. Everyone. It was an excuse for parents to get tipsy and for children to take advantage of that and get a little tipsy themselves. Last year, Max Jordan managed to get completely smashed without his parents even noticing. Albus and I had to drag him outside and sober him up. He just kept asking us why Roxanne wouldn't go out with him. Life seemed somehow simpler then.

"I can't dance," Charlie replies so quietly I can barely hear him.

"Oh I'm sure Lucy will teach you, she's the best dancer in the family, and if she doesn't, I will," I wink at him and he goes bright red. I make a mental note not to tease him again.

"Right, are we all ready?" Percy asks, checking everyone is here. "Rose, Charlie, you're closets to the fireplace, you go first," he instructs. I gently push Charlie into the fireplace as I grab a handful of floo powder and throw it in. It's a bit cramped for two in this fireplace and I can feel him pressed up against me – poor kid must be crimson by now. I manage not to trip coming out the fireplace in the Ministry but Charlie is not so lucky, he stumbles and grabs onto me and we both fall in a heap on the floor.

"Ow," I whine, supressing giggles at the look of mortification on Charlie's face. When he turns to look at me, I cannot hold them in anymore and burst out laughing. He smiles shyly seconds before Molly and Lucy come tumbling out of the fireplace and trip over our bodies, falling on top of us.

Laughing, we untangle ourselves and just as I finally come free of these bodies, another body comes slamming into me. I blink in surprise to find Madison squeezing me tightly. When she finally lets go, she drags me into the crowded main hall where me find Lara, Nina and Roxanne grabbing some butterbeers.

Now, as this is a _Ministry_ ball, most people assume it will be quite dull; however, they are clearly people who have never been before. Uncle Harry always has to give a speech (which he hates) but other than that, everyone just mulls around chatting and drinking and dancing. Luke comes to claim Madison for a dance and Madison agrees, much to Lara's dismay. Roxanne, meanwhile, is trying desperately to avoid Max's persistent demands for a dance and Nina has vanished off somewhere with a foreign looking guy.

"Do you think I'm crazy for being annoyed with Madison?" Lara murmurs.

"No I don't think it's crazy. Madison is just Madison though, she does what she wants and sometimes doesn't realise that it might hurt people," I shrug, sounding oddly like Roxanne. "Maybe you should just talk to her about it," I suggest. "But for now, I think you should agree to dance with that hot guy coming towards us right now," I grin, hiding my last few words behind my glass and nodding my head in the direction of a dark haired boy I faintly recognise from school. Lara giggles.

"Excuse me," the boy mutters, finally reaching us. "I was wondering if you would like to dance?" He holds out his had to Lara, who takes it with a blush and a nod. I wink at her and she grins back. Well now I am left all alone. Isn't that just perfect.

"Hey," Lucy shouts, dragging Charlie behind her as she comes over to me. "I'm exhausted! I never knew Charlie was such a good dancer!" she breathed, grinning at him. "I'm going to get a drink, Rose you don't look tired at all, Charlie dance with her," she orders, not noticing the eyebrow I have raised at her boyfriend, who incidentally was look anywhere but at me. To my surprise, once Lucy has planted a quick peck on his lips and run off for a drink, Charlie finally glances up at me, an apologetic smile on his face.

"Hmm, so Mr I Can't Dance…" I tease and he blushes, shrugging and downing the drink I had just put down on the table.

"You wanna dance?" he asks, slamming the glass back down on the table and looking me in the eye. I begin to wonder exactly how much he has had to drink already. He gets up without waiting for a reply and holds out his hand to me. Having nothing better to do, I take it and he drags me onto the dance floor. It soon becomes apparent that Lucy was not exaggerating when she said Charlie could dance.

The world becomes a blur as he spins me around, making me feel like I am floating across the dance floor. As we dance, he losses that shy edge I am so used to seeing on him and smiles openly at me, not breaking our gaze as we dance. Only once do I stumble. Into another couple. Grabbing onto Charlie's robes to steady myself, I accidently trip over the hem of my own robes and begin to fall hopelessly towards the ground. For the second time that night, I find myself in a heap, on the floor, with Charlie Goldstein. Merlin must hate me.

Unlike last time, it is Charlie's turn to begin laughing hysterically. I frown at him, trying to appear offended but his laughter is infectious and I soon find myself laughing along with him. Until a hand reaches down in front of my face and I look up into the slightly amused eyes of Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy. Did I kill Merlin's child or something?

"Are you alright?" Scorpius asks when I do not take his hand. His voice snaps me out of my embarrassment and, blinking, I reach out to take the offered hand. He pulls me up. In the crowded space of the dance floor, our bodies are almost touching and I can feel a familiar tingle coursing up my arm from the hand he is still holding.

"Sorry, I just, uh, tripped," I reply lamely. At last he lets go of my burning hand and I have to refrain myself from sighing in sorrow. "Thanks," I mutter again.

"Don't worry about it," he smiles. "Is your friend okay too?" he asks, looking behind me at Charlie, whose existence I had momentarily forgotten. By now he has also managed to scramble off the floor and is currently dusting off his robes and looking a little embarrassed.

"I am fine, thank you," Charlie says curtly. "I'll see you later Rose," he nods to me, using my first name for the first time that I can remember before vanishing into the crowds. I almost follow him. Almost. Before I remember who I am standing next to.

As I turn back to Scorpius, I realise with a start that he is no longer there and has left me stranded in the middle of a dance floor, partnerless. Well, that was the most humiliating thing I have ever experienced.

* * *

**Hello there lovely readers! I would love to hear your thoughts on this and if you want to check out my blog for my stories, there is a link on my profile page. Thank you all for reading and I will love you even more if you review, GirlOnTheSidelines.**


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